Steinar Bastesen
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Steinar Bastesen (26 March 1945 – 18 February 2024) was a Norwegian politician, fisherman and whaler. He was first elected to the Norwegian
Storting The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The Unicameralism, unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list propo ...
in 1997 as an independent candidate, and in 1999 broke out and founded the
Coastal Party The Coastal Party () is a Regionalism (politics), regionalist, Agrarianism, agrarian list of political parties in Norway, political party in Norway. The party has district, fishing and coastal issues among its primary policies with its main poli ...
(''Kystpartiet''). He headed the party from its founding until March 2005, when internal disparity among the members forced him to give up his leadership. Bastesen kept his seat in the Storting until the 2005 election six months later.Billy Jacobsen
Steinar Bastesen
NRK The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company. The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...
, retrieved 6 July 2013


Life and career

Steinar Bastesen was born on the island of Dønna to fisherman Ingvart Meyer Bastesen and housewife Karly Edvarda, née Edvardsen. He first participated in whaling with his father and in 1953, aged 8, and bought his first whaler ship in 1971 when he was 26. Later the same year he received an award from the Norwegian Society for Sea Rescue for rescuing people on a wrecked ship with his whaler ship during a severe storm. Bastesen became actively involved in local industry and politics in the late 1970s and later held elected positions in the organization for Norway's fishermen, Norges Fiskarlag, and in the organization for the sale of fish, Norges Råfisklag. He was leader of an organization for whalers, Norges Småkvalfangerlag, from 1984 to 1996. In the 1980s he was active as a local politician for the Centre Party and later for the Conservative Party, before he later became a member of parliament for the
Non-Partisan Deputies The Non-Partisan Deputies (, TVF), was a minor political party in Norway and the predecessor of the Coastal Party of Norway. The party emerged from the relatively small stratum of conservative EU critics during the 1994 Norwegian EU referendum who ...
(1997–2001) and the Coastal Party (2001–2005). In 2005, he resigned from the leadership position after internal disputes, and was later dismissed from the party altogether in 2008. He briefly attempted a return to politics for the
Non-Partisan Deputies The Non-Partisan Deputies (, TVF), was a minor political party in Norway and the predecessor of the Coastal Party of Norway. The party emerged from the relatively small stratum of conservative EU critics during the 1994 Norwegian EU referendum who ...
in 2009, but failed to the required votes. He returned to the Coastal Party in 2017, but again failed to get enough votes to get elected. Bastesen was best known for his vigorous advocacy of whaling, and usually appeared on television or at events wearing a seal-fur vest, which was met with controversy, especially abroad. While attending a trade convention in the
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in 1994, his vest was confiscated as it violated American import laws on whaling products, but was returned to him via mail two years later. In 1997, Canadian anti-whaling activist
Paul Watson Paul Franklin Watson (born December 2, 1950) is a Canadian-American environmental, conservation and animal rights activist, who founded the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, an anti-poaching and direct action group focused on marine conserva ...
claimed in an
NRK The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company. The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...
interview that Bastesen had threatened to kill him. Bastesen vehemently denied the allegation, and sued NRK for defamation of character by letting the interview air. Bastesen won in the
Oslo District Court Oslo District Court () is a district court located in Oslo, Norway. This court is based at the Oslo Courthouse in the city of Oslo. The court serves the entire city of Oslo and the court is subordinate to the Borgarting Court of Appeal. As the ...
, but lost in the appeal court in 2002 as the court found that Watson's accusation was of journalistic interest. In 1998, Bastesen said that the whale Keiko, known from the ''
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'' films, should be killed and the meat sent to Africa as
foreign aid In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another. The ...
. This was his response to hearing that millions of dollars were being spent on preparing the whale for returning to the wild.


Health issues and death

Bastesen struggled with health issues for the last decades of his life, which he later said were the result of an unhealthy lifestyle, excessive drinking, and overworking himself. In late 2001, he suffered a series of strokes that left him hospitalized for several months; during the first few weeks it was unclear whether or not he would survive, but he eventually made a full recovery. In 2009, he again suffered a minor stroke while celebrating his 64th birthday, but recovered quickly. Soon after, he was diagnosed with
prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, ...
, but made a full recovery. Bastesen began exercising and changing his lifestyle to avoid further health issues, losing 30 kgs (66 lbs) of weight. Bastesen died in a drowning accident near his home on 18 February 2024, at the age of 78.


See also

* Hans Bauge


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bastesen, Steinar 1945 births 2024 deaths Coastal Party politicians Critics of animal rights Norwegian people in whaling People from Dønna Members of the Storting 2001–2005 Members of the Storting 1997–2001